To Prove A Point
by imadoodlenoodle
Summary: When Harry receives a letter from the Dark Lord in the summer before his sixth year, he doesn't expect to be whisked away to Voldemort's stronghold and forced to watch the death of two strangers. But that's what happens and, somehow, he isn't killed.
1. Chapter One : A Letter

**To Prove A Point**

_**Chapter One : A Letter**_

His godfather was dead, he was trapped with the Dursleys and now an owl really wanted his attention. Harry eased off the bed and made his way over to the window. The owl flew in immediately and made itself at home on Hedwig's perch. Harry did not recognise the bird, it was a plain brown owl with no markings. A normal post owl it seemed. Harry relieved the bird of the letter and watched as it left, soaring off into the distance. Harry looked down at his hand; the letter was completely ordinary, the envelope was the crispy starch card and his name, _Mr H. J. Potter, _was printed across it. Apprehensively Harry opened the letter. He wasn't expecting any mail from anyone, and he knew the owl didn't belong to anyone he knew. Harry was confused then, as the only people he knew where he lived were members of the Order, but why would they be writing to him? If it was with plans to move him Harry would have expected a message from either Hermione or Ron, or Dumbledore himself. Sitting down at his wobbly desk, Harry unfolded the parchment and scanned the letter. To say he was surprised at the sender's identity was not giving Harry's reaction justice. Bewildered, Harry read on. His confusion only grew.

_Mr Potter, _

_Have you ever thought about the reasons why you fight against me? I have seen your childhood, those many years spent with your Muggle relatives, and I have seen how they treat you. In today's society such actions are called abuse. Mild abuse, nothing compared to the horrors that have a hold on some children, but abuse nonetheless. Personally I do not believe that to be their worst crime against you. You are a resilient boy Mr Potter, their treatment of you may not be caring but it has certainly helped shape who you are today. No, their biggest failure was denying you your heritage, you were as knowledgeable about the Wizarding World as a Muggleborn. And, pray tell, who did they send to tell you about our World? To tell you that you were one of the most famous wizards alive? They send a half-giant who barely holds a place in our world as it is. Now, I realise you are probably mentally defending your friend, I would not be surprised as that is part of who you are; Harry James Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, defender of the weak – excuse me if I do not carry on. You have been shaped through your experiences. With you 'family' you have learnt to be humble and meek, to know your place and you know strive to help those who you perceive to be in a similar situation; your friends have taught you the value of friendship, how you need to be able to rely on others to help you succeed and they have secured your intolerance of, intolerance really. You can neither be anti-Muggle because of your mother and friend, and you cannot be anti-Pureblood because of your father and your friendship with the Weasley family. Nicely in the middle, with no animosity towards any particular group of people. _

_For me that was never the way. I will admit that my childhood – which I know you have seen as during our shared possession I saw you feel your way through some of my memories – was not the one I deserved. Unlike you however, I fought against it and protected myself. I learned to be the one with the power, instead of the other way around. You, Harry Potter, did not. _

_When I reached Hogwarts I was worried that my power would be taken away from me. In the orphanage I was the only one with a special gift, but at Hogwarts everyone was magical. I soon noticed a difference between myself and most of the other students; I was willing to do anything to not lose my position of power. I would never allow myself to be at the beck and call of others – unless it was the facilitate something else of course. You will notice I said most students. If I were to find anyone else like myself it would be in Slytherin house. No, they were not all as ruthless as I was, no one was but many of them came close. _

_I think the main difference between myself and them was the fact their power was handed to them whereas I had to work for mine. The other children at the orphanage did not just suddenly begin being pliant, I had to work them. Many Slytherin children came from strong and affluent families, none of them were Muggleborn, they all knew their place in the world and knew that other's should too._

_My dominance in the Slytherin house was solidified by the end of my fifth year, and I was soon on my way to being a rising star in the Ministry. A certain piece of magic caught my eye though, at the end of my fifth year which took that plan off the table. I was going to be the Minister of Magic, but why stop there? With this piece of magic I could rule Britain without resistance and would have the time to conquer the world. Grand plans were in my mind and as you already know, I didn't let anything stop me. _

_Little Harry Potter. Just a baby, but still you managed to stop me. Well, they say you stopped me but really it was your mother. A Muggleborn and a Half-blood. You may be wondering why I hate Muggleborns when my father was one, and I myself am a Half-blood. I have no choice over my blood, but I have done everything in my power to erase that filthy side of me. I do not embrace both my 'cultures' I use one to destroy the other. When Muggleborns come into our world they should make the choice: magical or Muggle. The mixing of our cultures should never been attempt, not only for the safety of the Wizarding world, but also so we do not allow them to destroy the world even more than they have been. Even technology the Muggle world creates – their parrell to our magic – takes advantage of this planet and is choking it. _

_You may laugh at the idea of me being an 'environmentalist' as I believe they are so named, but when you plan to live forever Harry, you want your home to be pleasant. _

_I digress. Back to that fateful Halloween incident. I suppose you do not forgive me for the deaths of your parents? I will not belittle their deaths by apologising or calling it a mistake. 'A regretted action is a wasted one.' I do regret trying to kill you though. The full truth, I regret the fall out that occurred due to my haste to be rid of you. I deemed their deaths necessary, you would obviously disagree. You value their lives even though you've never met them. That one idea may be one of the biggest reasons you fight against me. Hide it with thoughts of justice and morality, but deep down perhaps it is all for revenge. _

_I would have though you might have stood a chance of being a Slytherin. Despite your parents both being Gryffindors I would have thought your 'relatives' would have instilled in you a high level of self preservation. Instead, we find ourselves with the exact opposite. Perhaps you are so eager to defend your friends and lay your life down for them is because they are the first ones you have ever had and you would do anything to keep that little ounce of acceptance that comes with them. Another remnant of your relatives' training?_

_I loathe to admit it, but you are rather resourceful and you do seem good with leadership. Leadership is a Slytherin quality; Gryffindors are the fighters. Gryffindor was well known for his jewel encrusted sword, was he not? My ancestor Slytherin was well known for his, also jewel encrusted, quills. Amazing things, he had the first dicta-quills ever invented, which makes sense when he was the one to created them. Blood quills, self inking, shrinkable . . . he really did have a collection. Now I have his collection; who has your birth right? Dumbledore; it decorates his office, does it not? While it stays there you will never know the special qualities it possesses. A shame._

_Now, I suppose the overwhelming thought that has been running through your mind is why I would be writing a letter to you of all people. The truth? I tire of the cat and mouse games we play Mr Potter, I have not come to where I am today merely through fear and pain. I wish to show you the side that has swayed many intellects and so called 'light wizards' to my side and in doing so I wish to prove a point. You will find out what it is I wish to prove soon. You may also be wondering why I am being so honest with you. Dark Magic does have it's advantages over the Light Magic and one of them is working on you now. By now the magic will have taken hold of you, there is nothing left for you to fight, and it is weaving a web in your mind. Any attempt to break this web will result in the fracturing of your mind. This web will hold all that I tell you safe in your mind, and you will be unable to speak of it or show anyone else unless I grant you permission. It is not how I wished to begin this, but it is a necessary precaution. _

_Onto the second task of this letter – the first being to introduce myself and share some thoughts with you – the actual getting you to see part._

_Would you like to know something interesting Harry? Your wards keep out things with ill intent and because I wish you ill intent towards you . . . . _

_Drop the letter Harry._

_You can't, can you? Mild sticking charm which, due to that pesky law about under age magic, you won't be able to be rid of it until it wears off. Which it will in five to six hours._

_Remember Harry, no ill intent is expressed. You may now be wondering why I would stick you to the letter. If I do not wish you harm I can send you a Portkey, say in the form of a letter? It will activate in a moment. I will see you soon Mr Potter, shall I have the elves prepare some tea?_

As Harry read the signature his face contorted with shock and horror and he hardly had a chance to blink before he felt the familiar tug at his naval; then he was gone. His room stood empty, no trace of any person or letter - bar the envelope still resting on the desk. It then too disappeared, suddenly catching alight, the ashes whipped up and sprawling out of the window, caught in a breeze that appeared as suddenly as the flames.

Silence.

_Regards, _

_Lord Voldemort_

**_

* * *

_**

**_A/N: This is an edited version of the original chapter and longer than before. I will not be working on this story until October as I'm currently involved in a drabble challenge, but after that I hope to update once a month; a long time I know, but I'll also be working on another story at the same time. _**

**_Reviews would be appreciated, especially if you have an 'point' you want the Dark Lord to prove to Harry!_**

**_Thanks for reading, _**

**_Sarah_**

**_[I'm just going to mention this now and get it out of the way; every time I add a story to my alerts list I leave a review. It's polite and it doesn't take long. One review is better than a completely silent reader. I don't care if you don't do it for any of my stories, but do it for others. Maybe we can get to a stage where authors have stories with more reviews than alert adds - reviews do mean more. If you go forth and do this, thanks. If not, well, I hope you suffer the wrath of alert adds and no reviews. :p]_**


	2. Chapter Two : A Death Or Two

**To Prove A Point**

_**Chapter Two : A Death Or Two**_

Harry felt the magic of the Portkey grab hold of him and he resisted the urge to retch when it pulled him around; contracted and spun about, Harry felt weightless, though at the same time the feeling of falling ran through him. It was over in seconds, but it felt like an eternity.

Falling to the floor, Harry tumbled over himself and landed in a heap. He didn't allow himself a moment to settle, fearful of what awaited him. He jumped up – ignoring the dizziness – and stuck out his wand hand, ready to fight. Only to realise he had left his wand in his hidden compartment underneath his bedroom floorboards. The only thing that was in his hand was the letter that had brought him here. Speaking of the letter, it began crumbling and shrinking, crinkling together until it disappeared entirely.

Glancing around furtively, Harry finally noticed that he was alone in the room. _'Someone will be here in a minute,' _he frantically thought, and scanned the room looking for a weapon of some kind. He was standing in a sitting room of some kind; the walls were papered in a pale green colour and the bottom lined with wood panelling. Surrounding a large coffee table in the middle of the room were a couple of stiff looking couches, the kind Harry had seen during a class trip to a period manor house. In front of the coffee table was a fireplace with a mantle. Harry rushed over to it, hoping for a large candlestick or another decoration but there was none. There were pictures hanging on the walls, plain countryside scenes featuring sheep and fields, and a large cream coloured rug on the floor, covering the floor boards. There room was very sparse and as far as Harry could tell there were no weapons or protection of any kind.

Harry moved quickly over to the windows. In all the films Harry had a chance to see the 'good guy' usually went through the door and, yes, he did usually escape but normally only after some sort of fight. Without a wand Harry didn't rate his chances of surviving such a fight very high at all.

The windows were almost the length of the wall and took up one entire side of the room. The thick and heavy green curtains were drawn back to let the sunlight in, and Harry had the chance to see the view out of them. All around he could see large rolling hills and patches of tall dark woods. Even if he was able to get out through the window, there was still no cover until he reached one of the woods, and it looked to be a mile away. Nevertheless, it was really the only way Harry could see of escaping, so he reached up and twisted the flimsy gold-plated catch. It wouldn't turn. Harry tried again, with more force this time, his desperation finally starting to leak through into his actions. When it still wouldn't move he tried another, and then another. He quickly exhausted the number of windows, and couldn't see a way of unlocking them. Considering the windows, Harry saw that they were made up of small panes of glass and the wooden frame seemed quite thin and fragile.

Casting his eyes around, Harry looked for something to break the window with. His eyes lighted on the coffee table, but he disregarded that immediately; it was made out a dark wood and was quite big and sturdy, Harry knew he'd not be able to lift it.

There was nothing else, and Harry felt the first chords of panic hit him when he caught sight of the pictures. He really just needed something with an edge, something he could smash against the window. Moving over the nearest one he braced himself before lifting it up, off it's hooks. He was surprised when it didn't turn out to be as heavy as he had originally thought, and he was able to carry it over to the window with ease and speedily. Not sure of the best way to do it, Harry clutched the landscape under one arm and steadied it with the other before running at the window and ramming the picture into it.

Almost immediately he bounced back, his arms jarring painfully and the window intact. The picture was fine too, examining it, he noticed that the frame wasn't cracking and the glass was fine. Peering at the windows he saw that none of the panes were scratched and the white painted framework was perfect.

The only evidence that he had just flung himself at the window was the painful motion sweeping up his arms.

Harry dropped the picture with disgust and surveyed the room once more.

His eyes rested on the fireplace but he hastily decided that he would have a better chance escaping through the front door than the fireplace which would take him up to the roof – if he was small enough and strong enough to climb that far.

He was wandless, defenceless and trapped inside the house of the Dark Lord. With all other options exhausted, Harry bit his lip and cursed his luck, before striding towards the door.

He was just passing the coffee table when a quiet click sounded out and he froze. He watched, unable to move, as the white door was gently opened to reveal the Dark Lord.

"Good afternoon Harry, welcome to my home," Voldemort greeted him, staring at him with a blank expression on his face. He took in the room and noticed the picture lying on the floor. "I see you've been moving things about," he commented before drawing his wand out of his pocket and flicking it towards the painting. The picture was pulled up and rehung in a moment.

Harry eagerly stared at the wand, his hands dying to reach out for it.

Voldemort saw his desire and merely smiled before replacing the wand. "I see you haven't got your wand," he said, sweeping forward and reclining on one of the couches.

At his movement, Harry had jumped back automatically. His muscles were tense, ready for his chance to spring into action.

The Dark Lord motioned to another one of the chairs, and indicated he should sit. "Would you care for some tea Harry? My elves have also made cake and sandwiches."

"You brought me here to drink tea and eat sandwiches?" Harry stared bewildered at the Dark Lord and remained standing.

"Well, no, of course not. I brought you here for something much more important but proper etiquette would deem it impolite to not offer you refreshments first." Again the Dark Lord motioned for him to sit, and again Harry stood standing, completely amazed and confused at the situation.

"Peachy!" the Dark Lord called and a second later a small house elf appeared and bowed before the Dark Lord.

"Yes Master Dark Lordness? How can Peachy be helping you todays Sir?" The speech of the House Elf seemed to be Harry's last straw. The crazy situation got the best of him and he sunk down into the chair behind him. Almost drunk on the sheer unbelievable scene, Harry smirked at the thought of the Dark Lord having a House Elf named Peachy.

Voldemort caught sight of it and glared, his anger sending a warning pang through Harry's head.

"I saw that Potter. Don't think that proper etiquette will keep me from punishing you if you cannot control yourself." Turning to the House Elf he said, "Peachy we will take the tea now and prepare a spread to be sent up immediately." The dismissed House Elf vanished.

This was too much for Harry; the Dark Lord was almost politely asking his House Elf for tea and a 'spread.'

"_Porasco,_" Voldemort intoned and a spell flew at Harry; he was too slow to react and so the bright orange light hit him straight in the face. Harry felt the affects straight away, he could feel swats being directed at his body. They weren't hard but they were constant and Harry soon felt the red hot flash of numbing pain sweep across his abdomen.

"Ow, bloody hell, stop it!" Harry shakily ordered, his voice jumping when another hit landed.

Voldemort eventually ended the spell, and looked at Harry as if he was a misbehaving toddler.

"Do not laugh at me Potter, and keep yourself under control."

"When are you going to kill me?"

The Dark Lord laughed; "I'm not going to kill you Harry, bad manners I'm told."

"I don't believe you."

The Dark Lord looked at him for a moment then pulled out his wand and in a clear strong voice;

"I swear on my Magic and Life that I shall not physically harm Harry James Potter when he visits this house following an invitation in the form of a letter or note." A mix of colours swirled around the Dark Lord and his wand before fading away.

"Satisfied?"

"I suppose. Who told you it was bad manners?" Harry asked honestly intrigued.

The Dark Lord studied him for a moment before replying. "I, did not have the time to correctly study etiquette and whatnot when I was younger. I had a number of, _advisers_, to bring me up to speed. When you move in the circles of the high societies you need to know how to act."

"Enough on that though; would you like sugar?"

Harry nodded and held up two fingers.

"Milk?"

Harry nodded again, unable to believe what was happening to him. The Dark Lord handed him his cup delicately balanced on a saucer and Harry decided then just to go along with whatever the Dark Lord was playing at. Hopefully he would not be hit with that weird spell again or get crucioed.

Hopefully.

"What was that spell you hit me with? Porko?"

The Dark Lord tittered.

"Porasco. Witches use it to keep their children in line when they are misbehaving, a mild spanking spell."

"Are you telling me I just got spanked by the Dark Lord?"

"How very mature of you."

"Fine, I was only joking." Biting the bullet; "What point did you want to prove? Pureblood supremacy? Blondes really are stupider?"

"No, none of them. The value of life."

"Value of life?"

"Yes. Is one persons life worth more than another?"

"No! Never, everyone deserves to live!"

"Including myself and my Death Eaters?"

"Ye- I, no, that's not fair!"

"Life usually is not.

They fell into silence and spent the next hour drinking tea and snacking. They did talk occasionally, about neutral topics like Fudge's incompetence, how Hufflepuff should have a rebellion of some sort. They skipped around the other things. Like the War, the fact they were enemies and so forth.

"What do I can you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Tom, Jr, Riddle, Voldemort, Mr Dark Lord, You Bastard, Voldie, I could go on?"

"No no, I think you've expressed enough." The Dark Lord thought for a moment. "I suppose, you could call me Voldemort. Just try and say it respectful, so the Death Eaters don't get the wrong idea."

"And hosting a tea party for your enemy doesn't give the wrong idea?"

"Do you want to be spanked again?"

* * *

"Come then Potter we-"

"-call me Harry."

"What? Why?"

"Potter makes it sound like I'm in trouble and I don't have a nickname that I made up to try and make myself appear cool like you did."

The Dark Lord glared at him and another shooting pain flashed through Harry's head. Wincing, but otherwise ignoring it, Harry spoke again. "Where we going?"

"I- eh, we are going to the ballroom, it's where I meet usually with my Death Eaters. Today though there are only some of the Inner Circle and a few _guests_."

"You're going to torture people in front of me aren't you?"

"Not exactly. Hush now and follow me in." Voldemort pushed open a set of double doors and entered a large cool room that was dimly lit with a few candles. Harry followed him and closed the doors loudly behind him.

"You forget to pay your electricity bill or something?"

"_Por_-"

"Okay okay! No more smart comments!" Harry glanced around to see who the other inhabitants of the room were. Malfoy, The LeStrange brothers, the Bitch, Snape, Dolohov. Not the full circle then.

"Harry Potter! How are you? Still upset that you ickle doggy was put down?" Bellatrix started to taunt Harry as soon as she noticed was about to jump her when her husband, Rodolphus put up and arm across Bellatrix's chest and said gazing at Harry interestedly;

"Harry Potter? You attempted to Crucio my fair wife did you not?"

Harry cautiously nodded.

"Hmm . . . I am Rodolphus LeStrange, my brother Rabastan and my wife Bellatrix."

Feeling more confident then he had before Bellatrix's own husband put her in her place; "Yeah, I kinda know of you and Bellatrix and I have already had the pleasure of meeting one another. As have Mr Malfoy, Professor Snape and I also have had. You sir?" Harry knew fully well who the last Death Eater was. He was the one who had injured Hermione during the fight at the Ministry. The Death Eater took a step forward and bowed his head.

"I am Dolohov." With that he moved back and was left standing slightly apart from the rest of the group.

"Good day Mr Potter." Though his words were gracious the sneer adorning his lips said otherwise, Harry merely nodded. Snape looked at him, stared for a while then looked away. Weird.

"Take a seat Harry. Dolohov, bring them in." Harry and the Dark Lord both sat down, Harry on a simple chair but the Dark Lord had to recline on a large dominating throne. Self esteem issues.

Dolohov returned bringing with him two men. One of the men was dressed in a clean and neat suit, he was cleanly shaven and had an air of tidiness about him. The other was the direct opposite. Dirty, with random pieces of clothing, long matted hair and a great big bushy beard he looked homeless or like Sirius after Azkaban. They were thrown to the floor and surrounded by the Death Eaters.

"Everyone deserves to live Harry? No ones life is worth more than another? One of them will die. You decide."

"What? No! I refuse, you can't kill them!"

"You choose on of them or they both die."

Harry started sweating, he didn't want anyone to die!

"I refuse! Kill me instead!"

"That, today, is not an option. You will choose."

"No!"

Voldemort paused. When he spoke again his words were slow and deliberate.

"You will choose or I will kill them both, after torturing them and making you watch. If you do not choose in the next ten second I will also order a young Muggle girl to be brought the this room where she will be tortured and killed." The Dark Lord leaned over to Harry and spoke straight into his ear. Whispering; "And while she is tortured, while she cries and bleeds and screams for her mother I will make sure that she is looking at you, staring at you- accusing you with her very gaze. While you watch unable to help, to stop it and knowing it is your fault because you would not choose one man to die so two may live. Who do you choose?"

Harry closed his eyes.

"You'll release the girl and the other man? Wipe their memories so they remember none of this?"

Voldemort nodded. Harry pointed to the man of the left. The homeless looking one.

"Say it Harry. Say it," Voldemort urged.

"Kill him. Kill that one." Rabastan was the one to do it. Aimed, two words and the man's life was over. It went black.

* * *

When Harry came back around the room was empty apart from Voldemort.

"Can I go home? You've proved your point!"

Voldemort did not turn around.

"Oh yes? Pray tell, what was it?"

"I'm no better than you, deciding who should live, who should die. I'm no better..."

"Hmm... That was the first part. There is another. Only half the point. You looked at the Muggle scum, compared him with the other Muggle, the clean one the one who looks like part of society. You killed the scum. That is how we see it. Muggles scum, wizards part of society the ones who should live. Enter!" He turned and returned to his seat, and in a low voice continued; "The second part."

All the Death Eaters entered again, walking in twos blocking out who was being brought this time. Harry felt a sense of dread fill his body. Surely not the little girl?

They parted and formed a circle again, Dolohov threw two people into the circle. The man who was lucky to live last time and- Hermione. Hermione was lying on the floor, stunned. Harry jumped up but was pulled back down by Voldemort.

"Move and she dies. So, Harry. Two Muggles. Both members of society, both hard workers. The girl is obviously your friend, daughter to two Muggles, owns a cat. The man has a wife, two young children- two boys. A dog. What was the dog called Dolohov? Yes, Rover. Your friend only has her parents, the man has parents, siblings and children. We will discard the fact that one of them must have more friends than the other and would therefore be more likely to be more missed. Choose."

Harry was frozen to his seat. Hermione. "No. Please not Hermione. Don't, I, I will-"

"You heard him. The girl is to live."

Harry realised what was happening as the light struck the man. Accident or not he was dead because Harry said so. Voldemort cast a privacy spell.

"You killed someone who had more people who would miss him, would grieve because their loved one was dead and you did it because he was not your friend. That is what I do. Kill those that would kill, imprison, hurt the ones I protect. Not so different. Both lived with people who disliked us, Hogwarts being our first real home, not knowing who we are having to wait for others to bother to tell us. All the people that knew your parents and none of them ever spoke to you about them. Where were your mother's friends? Their teachers? Come, back the sitting room." Voldemort dropped the privacy spell and stood.

"What about Hermione? What will you do with her now?"

"It was never her. Glamour spells. Come."

The full horror of his actions flooded Harry and he numbly followed. Rodolphus joined them.

"May I write to you again Harry?" Voldemort asked when they were sat back in the sitting room.

"Do I have a choice?"

"If you do not accept the letter the first time I will send another coated in something that would blow your mind. And your house. I believe it would be more beneficial to your health for you too accept. How could I convince you?"

"Bellatrix's head on a platter." Realising who was in the room Harry met Rodolphus's face. He was smiling. Voldemort noticed Harry's shocked look.

"Ah... Arranged marriages. Rodolphus and Bellatrix hate each other. Rodolphus would help, I believe, in relieving his wife of her head." He smiled on.

Harry drank one more cup of tea and ate another cucumber sandwich before leaving. He arrived back in his room shaken and confused by the days events. Not feeling up to anything at the moment Harry chose to climb into bed and leave the real world behind for a while.

"I hate choices."

* * *

**_A/N: Thank you for the reviews for the last chapter, especially those of you who pointed something things out that I missed, or offered up some points. I haven't replied to any of the reviews yet, I'm about to do that now!_**

**_Anywho, now you've read it . . . what do you think?_**

**_Sarah_**


	3. Chapter Three : Reactions

**To Prove A Point**

_**Chapter Three : Reactions**_

As soon as Harry Potter left the property of 4 Privet Drive, a blue light lit up on one of the many devices that lined the shelves that lined the walls of Albus Dumbeldore's office at Hogwarts. The sudden change caught the Headmaster's attention instantly. Catching sight of the change, he frowned before finishing the letter he was writing.

' _. . . the request for additional funds Pomona would be fulfilled almost instantaneously if you wouldn't mind revealing how much extra money your budget would need and, most importantly for the Governors, what it would be used for. _

_When you have the time, drop by my office and we'll discuss the matter._

_ Albus _

Signing his name with a flourish, he tapped his wand against the parchment to magically dry the ink before rolling the letter up and dispatching it with the waiting school owl.

Watching it soar of into the distance, he momentarily forgot about the blue light, however, as ever, such things could never be forgotten forever. Thoughts of war, the Order and Harry Potter nearly continuously plagued his mind, never letting him just be the Headmaster of Hogwarts, reminding him that he was also a leader in the war against Tom.

Sighing, he turned back to his desk and gently pulled open the top left hand draw where he stored his chocolate frog card that had been charmed to allow him, and other holders of such a card, to communicate securely and quickly.

Retrieving it, he held it up and lightly smiled at the image of himself who was peering unabashed back him. Speaking clearly, he intoned the name of one of the members of the Order who was currently watching over Harry.

"Nymphadora Tonks."

* * *

Rapping distinctly on the freshly painted brown door of the house, Tonks rested one hand on her wand which lay in her back pocket, prepared to spring into action at the drop of a hat.

The door was opened by Petunia Dursley who sniffed and looked upon Tonks with disdain. Knowing who - and what - she was, Petunia dropped any pleasantries she may have had, and went straight to the point.

"Yes?" she hissed, "What do you want? The boy's upstairs, perfectly fine." Glancing around, she looked to see if anyone was watching this doorstep encounter.

Reacting to the disdain in her usual way (a lack of respect and an increase in attitude), Tonks took her time and loudly chewed her bubble gum pink gum before blowing and cracking it loudly in the woman's face. Hampering any further disrespect was the knowledge that Harry might not be safe.

"Mrs Dursley, I need to come in. We think there's something wrong with Harry."

"I told you! He's fine!" Torn between wanting her to leave quietly and not wanting to cause a scene in full view of her neighbours, Petunia nevertheless stood by and let Tonks enter the house.

Tonks darted inside through the tiny gap the woman had given her and felt the door sweep close quickly behind her.

"He's in his room. You know where it is." Throughout this brief exchange, Petunia kept her eyes off Tonks, steadily ignoring her presence and staring straight ahead. As Tonks headed up the stairs, Petunia turned and returned to the kitchen to warn her husband.

Tonks heard a cup being slammed down onto a counter and a whispered conversation take place as she continued up to the first floor.

Knocking on Harry's door, she called out his name and waited for a response. Receiving nothing, she twisted the door knob and stepped inside.

One first glance Tonks confirmed Harry was nowhere to been seen. All that was in his room was a tall cheap wardrobe, a desk and a single bed in the far corner. Tonks couldn't see any of Harry's Hogwarts stuff and assumed it was beneath the stairs as usual. The only other thing of note was Hedwig's empty cage which rested on the desk. Strange, as owls were typically let out after dusk so Tonks took note of the absence of the bird.

Before she left she cast a number of charms to ensure that Harry truly was not in the room in any shape or form.

Leaving the room as she had found it, Tonks returned to the ground floor. Pausing to send a message back to the Headmaster, Tonks went to find the Dursley's, intent on having a few words with the family who hadn't even noticed Harry had disappeared.

* * *

As soon as Harry Potter entered the Dark Lord's cavernous meeting room, Severus Snape feared the war would be ending all too quickly, starting with the boy's death.

Restraining himself - the immediate reaction upon seeing Potter was the urge to grab the boy and Portkey out of there before Voldemort and his fellow Death Eaters began the pre-death torture, - Snape instead waited. He was not in on this plan and didn't know how Voldemort had managed to capture Potter in the first place, the wards around his aunt's house were supposed to be the strongest possible.

Slyly glancing at the people next to him, Snape saw that he was not the only one not to be in on the plan. The Dark Lord still trusted him then.

They all recovered quickly upon seeing the Boy Who Lived, greeting him in their own way, and what followed was tame by the Dark Lord's standards, but the effect on Potter was immense.

Following the second death he fainted to the entertainment of the others, Bellatrix in particular found the boy's weak stomach hilarious. Keeping blank faced throughout, Snape waited for his orders.

"Dolohov, you may remove the bodies and be rid of them," the Dark Lord gestured to the fallen body and the frozen body of the terrified Muggle who had been Glamoured into bearing the resemble to Hermione Granger.

"Put the girl into the dungeon, she may be useful later," he added as an after thought. "The rest of you may leave, Severus and Rodolphus stay."

After the others left, the Dark Lord beckoned the two closer.

"Severus," he said, his thin lipped mouth hissing on the final 's', "when Dumbledore asks you what happened here today leave nothing out, tell him everything."

"And what should I say as to your motives my Lord?"

The pause after his question almost caused him to glance up from the floor to see the Dark Lord's face, but he knew such a thing could lead to a short burst of the Cruciatus Curse. Training his eyes on the bottom of the Dark Lord's robe instead, he waited silently for his response.

"You do not know of my motive or intentions Severus, that is what you will tell him."

Treading on thin ice, but knowing the answer would be imperative to know, he ventured into asking his master one last question.

"And when he asks how you got the boy?"

The Dark Lord's high pitched cackle sprung forth and pierced the silence of the chamber. "Why Severus, you shall not have to answer that question. Dumbledore shall have the answer from the boy's mouth. No, Harry Potter shall not die today, today he is safe."

Dismissed, Snape hurried as fast as he could from the room to a point where he could Apparate away. He had to reach the Headmaster with this news as soon as possible, though they would have to wait for the Dark Lord to return their chosen one before they would find out how he got him in the first place.

* * *

**A/N: So those of you who have seen my profile would have known that I've been taking part in the DG Forum's Fic Exchange, which is why this hasn't been updated. **

**Thank you for the reviews, I'm about to go and reply to them now. [Actually, I may do that a bit later as I typed half of this up on my phone this afternoon, so my thumbs are refusing to help any more.]**

**This story is on forty eight people's alert list! Which makes it the most alert-ful (you know what I mean) story I have, so thanks for that.**

**You've read it, now tell me what you think of it. **

Sarah

[**kamuinoyume: **Yes, reading it again and I agree, it is rushed at the end and I'll bear that in mind for future such situations. Thanks.]


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